BrickWall_Kobo by Steph

think maybe he’d finally found a niche where he could prove himself. And he had been. Until he’d hit this slump—
    His cell phone rang and he grabbed for it, hoping…
    Nope.
    Shit.
    “Hey, Cary.” He forced himself to sound normal. And probably failed miserably. “What’s up?”
    A slight pause. “Just wondering if you’re up for a few drills today.”
    He wanted to groan. Wanted to crawl back to bed and spend a few more hours wallowing. Which was stupid.
    “Yeah, sure. That’d be great.”
    Cary laughed. “I can tell you’re really into it. Long night?”
    “Uh…” What the hell did he say to that?
    Now Cary really started to laugh. “How ’bout we forget I asked that question and you meet me in an hour on the ice. Then you can tell me all about it.”
    A grin pulled at Shane’s lips. “What are you, now? My priest?”
    Cary snorted. “Worse. I’m your fucking captain. Get your ass to the arena.”
    Forty-five minutes and a fifteen-minute shower later, Shane parked beside Cary’s truck in the side lot and walked to the door where Cary waited for him.
    The guy had a shit-eating grin on his face that made Shane want to punch him.
    “Well, you look like you can walk okay, but can you skate?”
    Shane gave Cary the finger as he walked by him into the lower level of the arena, headed for the locker room. There was enough light to see where he was going, but he spent enough time here that he could do this walk blindfolded.
    “Still faster than you, old man. And who gave you a key to the arena? I can’t believe management’s letting just the two of us use the ice.”
    “Called in a favor. Besides, it’s not that big a deal. That ice show’s coming in tomorrow and they’re gonna be using the ice to practice. So no big deal.”
    “Sweet.”
    They walked the last few yards to the locker room in silence. Shane had been expecting Cary to cross-examine him about last night, but surprisingly, he didn’t say a word. And when he stepped out on the ice to warm up while Cary was still in the locker room gearing up, Shane felt his muscles relax as he made a few circuits around the boards.
    Yes .
    He sucked in a deep breath, drawing in the cold air rising off the ice. Just the feel of the smooth surface under his blades and the sound they made as he circled the rink was enough to drop his blood pressure. Always had been. He stepped onto the ice and it felt like home.
    Having the ice to himself, even for these few seconds, was like being in his own private paradise.
    His mom had always complained that hell wasn’t hot. Hell was cold.
    Shane didn’t have an opinion on that, but he did know the cold helped him feel things more intensely and see things more clearly.
    “So, you have a good time last night? At dinner.”
    Cary matched his pace to Shane’s but Shane kept his gaze forward.
    “Yeah, the food was great. Thanks again for inviting me. Really appreciate the home-cooked meal.”
    “You left with Bliss.”
    “Yeah.”
    No way was he adding more. Cary was a friend but Bliss was friends with Lori. Shane wasn’t about to diss Bliss. No fucking way. And he couldn’t bring himself to drill Cary for information.
    Besides, he didn’t fuck and tell like some of the team. A few of the guys were worse than high school kids the morning after a date, spouting off about shit Shane never wanted to know. At least, not and be able to look the girl in the eyes the next day.
    “Everything…okay?”
    Shane shot his teammate a look. Cary sounded worried about something.
    “Yeah.” He frowned. “Wait, why? Did Bliss—”
    “Nope.” Cary help up his free hand. “Not why I’m asking. Lori hasn’t heard from her. I’m just…kinda worried about you.”
    Okay, this conversation was heading off the rails fast. “What the hell?”
    Cary shrugged. “Never mind. So, you ready to do some work?”
    Because he didn’t want to talk about what’d happened, at least not yet, Shane grabbed his helmet and stick from